The present invention relates to processes for joining precipitation hardenable materials and more particularly to a process for treating a welded region so as to increase its strength and conductivity.
Joining structures to one another, and particularly metal parts, is commonly accomplished by welding. For instance, two parts of a base metal are placed in contact. The respective portions to be joined are shaped suitably to form a selected configuration upon joining, i.e., a double U-shape or double V-shape joint. Weld filler material is then deposited and melted at the joint. Typically, the composition of weld filler material is matched to that of the base metal. Once the region between the parts has cooled, the parts are fused together.
While the filler material fused the base metal parts to one another, the process used to join them often resulted in a joining region weaker than the parts themselves. This not only limited the structural designs that could be built, but also the environments to which the parts could be subjected.